Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Li Du wondered what the matter was. Are Mexicans so hostile to Americans? No way.
The tourists were mostly foreigners, but there were still Americans on the streets.
He was not afraid of them, but he did not want to get into trouble for no reason.
So before their meal was served, he went up to the landlord, and after some
pleasantries went straight to the topic. “Man, can you give me some information? Those
boys, they’re obviously picking a fight, aren’t they?”
The boss, who was grinning happily, stopped smiling. He looked at Li Du and said, “You
are right.”
Li Du asked incredulously, “Why? Are all Mexicans so explosive? So belligerent?”
The owner shook his head and said, “Of course not. However, according to my guess,
there are two reasons why they picked on you. One is that you are rich, and the other is
that you provoked someone, and some people want to give you trouble.”
Li Du tried to press him for more information, but the boss shook his head and said he
only knew this much.
With these answers, Li Du came back.
Before he could say anything, Brother Wolf said quietly, “Someone is staring at us. Two
people, one on a motorcycle and one in a Nissan.”
Li Du nodded and quietly told what he had heard from the landlord.
When the waiter began to serve them, Godzilla raised his beer glass and sniffed. “Let it
damn go. Let them come, let's eat and drink so that we will have the strength to fight
them.”
He had been in one of the most ruthless gangs in the world. He had seen too much
blood to be scared by a few young thugs.
However, Brother Wolf thought differently. He said, “Later I will go to find a car, and we
can hurry back to the border. It is not worth getting injured fighting a bunch of thugs with
no money or status.”
Li Du has passed the age of fighting for fun, and he agreed with Brother Wolf’s opinion.
These young gangsters did not know who they were, otherwise they wouldn’t have
dared to provoke Brother Wolf and Godzilla.
Once those two got angry, they could kill someone, and Li Du did not want this to
happen in a moment of anger.
Godzilla took a gulp of beer, tore off a chicken leg and gobbled it down.
Hans said, “If it’s because we are rich, maybe they saw us give the beggar some money
and decided we’re generous?”
“It’s possible. Maybe the boss gave the driver too big a tip,” said Brother Wolf.
Godzilla, who was feasting, broke into a laugh. “Hey, Driver!”
Li Du nodded and said, “Yes, the driver…”
He had barely spoken when he realized that Godzilla meant someone else.
A middle-aged man with an expressionless face was walking down the street. He was
still wearing an orange American prison uniform, and he put on a dirty gray and black
cotton-padded coat that looked like it was scavenged from a trash heap somewhere.
Godzilla saw him, and he saw Godzilla. He slowly walked over and asked, “Can I get
something to eat?”
Li Du motioned him to sit and offered him a beer. He felt the man needed a drink to
improve his mood.
Driver didn’t touch his glass. He sat down and took some roast lamb chops from
Godzilla's plate.
Godzilla grabbed him by the shoulder and asked, “What’s the matter with you, man?
That’s not like you!”
He grabbed the tattered cotton-padded coat, flung it aside and draped his own coat over
the man’s shoulders.
Godzilla was tall, and his jacket resembled a robe on the other man, but it was warmer.
Driver smiled stiffly and mumbled, “Godzilla, my brother, thank you.”
“What happened to you?”
The driver grumbled, “Nothing, just encountered something, I just need a bite.”
Li Du, Hans, and Brother Wolf talked about how they came there to experience the
Mexican style and taste Mexican food, and now they had reached the goal and could
leave.
They really didn’t expect much trouble on this trip.
Hans tended to think that their obvious wealth was what provoked local gangsters.
As they discussed this, Driver ate his meal in silence, taking his last bite of corn chips to
dip into the chutney.
“Township group. It’s the township group that wants you, isn’t it?” He asked.
Li Du looked at him and said, “What did you say? You know about this? And who are
the township group? We didn’t provoke these people, did we?”
Driver said, “The young men with a saber in a burning chrysanthemum tattoo on their
necks, they belong to the township group.”
After a brief silence, he told them about the township group.
.
They were in the city of Nogales, in the Mexican state of Sonora that had the same
name as its United States counterpart.
Nogales in the north belonged to the United States and Nogales in the south to Mexico.
Driver pointed south, where the lights were blazing. “That’s the industrial zone. The city
depends on it for its taxes. About thirty to forty thousand people work there. They
produce mechanical phone parts, semiconductor devices, jumbo jet air ducts and so
on.”
“You Americans must be familiar with the names of the companies. Otis Elevators,
Black & Decker, General Electric. People who work there have a stable salary and the
job is pretty nice and not very exhausting.”
“All the young people around here want to work there, but they have to be educated or
skilled to get in, and some of them are not good enough for that, and are soon fired.
They’re called the township group.”
Hearing this, Li Du understood and asked, “These young people are the ones who have
been eliminated by the factories?”
“Yes,” Driver nodded. “They are miserable bastards, without a steady income, running a
gang, extorting tourists or doing some other shady business. The people who provoked
you are grasping vultures.”
“How do you know all this?” Brother Wolf asked.
Driver smiled and said, “Some of the township group does not join gangs. They will do
any part-time job and are even willing to cross the border illegally to find work. However,
if they are seized by U.S. law enforcement, they are held in custody for a period of time
and then deported in bulk to Nogales. I stayed with them.”
Li Du asked, “They are thugs, so someone must have hired them, right?”
“I don’t know,” Driver shook his head.
“I’ll find out.” Li Du beckoned to the waiter. “Get us the bill, but let your boss collect the
money.”
